The Wise Cleaning Life Of A Returning Genius Hunter [EN]: Chapter 86

085

“What did you say just now?”

Hanoi Branch, Headquarters Planning Office.

I asked Kim Min-joo again, thinking I might have misheard.

But her answer was the same.

“Unidentified Hunters are illegally occupying dungeons near the border!”

“Dungeon occupation……?”

Ah, no, more than that.

“Unidentified Hunters? Did some cartel move? I thought the International Association wiped them out about ten years ago.”

“I don’t know the details yet. However, so far, we’ve confirmed three locations near the Lao Bao, Tay, and Xop Cop border checkpoints.”

“Not even just one…….”

With a dumbfounded expression, I swept back my hair.

‘Why at this timing…….’

Dungeon occupation.

Now, the International Association and independent associations have joined forces and, after much effort, have mostly eradicated them, but in the past, there was a time when ability user cartels were rampant, mainly in developing countries.

Their main activities were kidnapping citizens and terrorism.

And dungeon occupation, where they occupied the entrance while association employees entered the dungeon, demanding money from the association before the dungeon closed.

I never thought I’d see that kind of thing again in this day and age.

‘What kind of messed up country is this that keeps having such ridiculous things happen?’

But even the most notorious cartels didn’t carry out dungeon occupations against operation teams.

Their main targets were those entering dungeons who lacked abilities and were relatively easy to handle.

Right…….

“Is there a cleaning team in the dungeon those bastards are occupying right now?”

“……Yes.”

“God damn it.”

Of course.

No matter who they are, they even checked the work schedule before moving.

You have to see it as they planned it out.

“How is our side responding? They’re not just standing by, are they?”

“An operation team nearby was immediately dispatched, but… the number of opponents is too large, making it difficult to even respond…….”

Damn it.

What are we supposed to do if we don’t do anything?

“So, what do they want? Are they demanding a ransom?”

“Well, they did make a demand… they’re asking for 100 billion [VND, Vietnamese Dong].”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

I was so dumbfounded that a hollow laugh burst out.

Is 100 billion someone’s dog’s name? [A rhetorical question implying the amount is absurdly high.]

Damn, isn’t that an impossible amount to ask for, logically speaking?

“To raise that kind of money, we’d have to sell even the newly completed hub to barely manage it…….”

Wait.

At that moment, a spark flashed in my head.

If a cartel occupied a dungeon against an operation team, the association would try to rescue them, even at the risk of armed conflict.

Operation teams are the association’s greatest asset and, above all, important personnel.

But cleaning teams are different.

It may sound cold, but it’s not worth it for the operation team to risk conflict to rescue a few cleaners.

The cartel also knows that, so they don’t make absurd demands.

Because no matter how ridiculous the demand, they’ll just ignore it.

But they asked for 100 billion?

No matter how I think about it, it’s one of two things.

Either they’re just crazy, or…….

“Kim Min-joo.”

“Yes.”

“What’s the estimated sale price of our hub right now?”

There’s another purpose from the start.

“At current value, it’s about 100 billion.”

“And some unknown Hunters are demanding that amount as ransom?”

“……I guess so.”

“What do you think?”

“What do I think……? Are you thinking this is related to the hub issue?”

I nodded.

The same cost as the estimated sale price of the hub. And the incident happened at a good time, just as negotiations with each branch broke down.

It was too convenient to dismiss it as a coincidence.

Even if it’s not, if we overlook this issue, the negotiations will proceed more unfavorably for us.

“……What are you going to do?”

Kim Min-joo asked cautiously.

I opened my mouth with a deep sigh.

“We can’t give that much money to save a few cleaners. But if we abandon the local employees of the branch we just acquired…….”

“The backlash would be enormous. The acquisition itself could be overturned.”

“Then what, there’s no choice.”

I got up from my seat.

“Which operation teams are left?”

“Teams 3, 4, 8, and 9.”

“Good. Kim Min-joo, you take teams 3 and 4 to the Tay border checkpoint. Han Yu-bin, you go to Xop Cop with teams 8 and 9.”

“Yes.”

Han Yu-bin, who had been clenching her fists and spewing anger from her eyes, jumped up as if she had been waiting for it.

“Then what about Lao Bao……?”

“I’ll go alone.”

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

Kim Min-joo asked worriedly, but I didn’t bother to answer.

“Everyone, pack your gear and get the helicopter ready.”

Saying that, I left the office first.

“Let’s go see the faces of those pathetic bastards.”

***

West, a mountain a few kilometers from the Lao Bao border.

Upon arriving at the reported location, I saw Operation Team 1 and Huin facing off against the freaks at a distance.

“You’ve arrived.”

Huin rushed over, panting.

“Yes, what’s the situation?”

“It’s as I reported. Cleaning Team 3 is trapped inside the dungeon, and they attack if we try to approach, making it difficult to even respond.”

“How much time is left until the dungeon closes?”

“Less than 15 minutes.”

Tsk, it’s touch and go.

“Didn’t they say anything special?”

“No. They’ve been silent since demanding the ransom. If we try to approach to negotiate, they immediately pour out attacks, making it impossible to move rashly…….”

Looking around, I noticed several team members who were injured.

It seemed they had already tried to make contact several times.

“Above all, there are quite a few of them. And I’m ashamed to say this, but… their skills seem to be above ours.”

“Hmm.”

I narrowed my eyes and looked at the distant dungeon.

The sight of quite a few people occupying the dungeon entrance was faintly visible from a distance of about 300m.

‘40… no, about 50 people.’

There are definitely more than I thought.

‘That seems to be about the size of two operation teams.’

The occupation accurately targeted the cleaning team’s entry.

At least 50 people.

No matter where they crawled out from, they’re quite skilled Hunters.

Anyone can see that they planned it out.

“We have to get the cleaning team inside out somehow… it would be nice if we could at least try to negotiate…….”

Huin trailed off, biting his lip.

I nodded, as if I had received all the information about the situation.

“I understand. From now on, I’ll handle it somehow, so Huin, contact the support team and call the medical staff first.”

“Yes, yes?! What do you mean, handle it somehow? Don’t tell me you’re going to fight alone…….”

“I’m going to try to resolve it through dialogue as much as possible.”

I forced a smile and took a step.

As I took a few steps forward towards the dungeon.

Bang―!!

An attack flew in from a distance.

Bang, bang―!!

Several more attacks followed.

It’s not an accurate attack.

It seemed to be a warning shot or a smokescreen to suppress the momentum.

As long as you don’t get scared, you can easily avoid it without moving much.

I kept walking forward without paying attention, and soon I faced the Hunters occupying the dungeon at a distance of about 100m.

No more attacks came.

Instead, someone’s voice was heard.

“Are you the head of the Vietnam Association?”

A man with a large build and a mask covering his face revealed himself.

He seemed to be their leader.

“That’s right.”

“Did you bring the ransom?”

“No.”

“…….”

I could see the man’s face turning fierce through the mask.

“Then why are you here?”

“I came to save our employees.”

“…Puh! Puhahahaha!”

The man’s laughter echoed loudly.

“What are you going to do all by yourself? Are you kidding me right now?”

“Hahaha.”

I also laughed along.

But only for a moment.

“Does this look like a joke to you, you son of a bitch?”

“…….”

Fortunately, it seemed my sincerity was conveyed, and no more laughter was heard.

Instead, the man opened his mouth with an even more ferocious face.

“So, you’re going to ignore our demands and save your colleagues?”

“Yes.”

“How? I’m telling you in advance, if you’re thinking of negotiating…….”

[Acquired Skill: Destroyer]

Bang―!!

“Negotiations are bullshit, you son of a bitch.”

The man was blown away with an explosion before he could finish speaking.

“……?”

“……Wh, what was that just now?”

The remaining Hunters looked back and forth between the man who had flown away and me, with dumbfounded expressions.

“Hey!”

Eventually, I opened my mouth first.

“You guys are from the Southeast Asia branch, right?”

“…….”

“…….”

What honest answers.

Isn’t it obvious?

It doesn’t make sense that a cartel that can’t even be identified is demanding that amount of money at this timing.

So, is it something they did together, or is it an order from above?

Well, either way, it’s unforgivable.

What kind of International Association branch are you guys to be doing this kind of gangster짓 [Korean slang for acting like a gangster or thug]?

Even pretending to be a cartel while hiding your affiliation.

“……Kill him.”

At that moment, the man covered in blood struggled to get up and opened his mouth.

“Kill that bastard, you son of a bitch!!”

“Yes, yes!”

At his command, about 50 Hunters prepared for battle, and some of them immediately began to rush towards me.

I looked at them and picked up the radio.

“Unfortunately, negotiations have broken down.”

The recipients were Han Yu-bin and Kim Min-joo, who were at other sites.

「You didn’t attack them out of the blue, did you?」

“……Of course not. I tried to resolve it through dialogue as much as possible.”

Well, I did do it, so there shouldn’t be any problems.

「Then well, there’s no other way.」

“Yes.”

One instruction was given to them.

“Let’s pick up the clubs.”

No sooner had the words been spoken than I threw down the radio and activated the skill.

[Acquired Skill: Hyper Boost]

[The caster’s movement speed is greatly increased during combat]

Paang―.

I charged straight ahead towards the oncoming guys.

***

―Near the Tay border checkpoint, in the forest.

Kim Min-joo, who had just arrived at the scene with Operation Teams 3 and 4, cut off the radio and looked straight ahead.

‘……No matter how I look at it, it seems like you attacked first.’

Just as she was muttering that, the leader of Operation Team 3 asked.

“What did he say?”

“It’s obvious, what else.”

She let out a smirk.

“Everyone, prepare for battle.”

“…….”

“…….”

About 30 Hunters took a stance with quite serious faces.

But unlike them, Kim Min-joo took out her weapon with a relaxed expression.

Unfortunately, her partner, Black Wolf’s Guidance, was left in Korea, so she borrowed one from another Hunter in a hurry.

“Hoo…….”

After taking a deep breath once.

[Unique Skill: Thousand-Armed Guanyin(千手觀音) [A Buddhist deity known for compassion and having many arms]]

Her fierce eyes pierced through the enemies.

“Let’s go.”

Tat―.

She rushed towards the enemies with light movements.

―Near the Xop Cop border, an old abandoned road.

Han Yu-bin, who was facing the freaks with Operation Teams 8 and 9, loosened her neck and shoulders.

“Be careful not to get caught up in it unnecessarily. I’m not good at distinguishing between enemies and allies while fighting.”

As she spoke, the leader of Operation Team 8 asked cautiously.

“Um, but aren’t you a member of the cleaning team, Team Leader……?”

“Are you sure you can fight?”

Other operation team members also had the same reaction.

Well, Han Yu-bin decided to understand since they had never seen her fight.

But there’s no time to explain what her former job was, what her style is.

So, instead of answering…….

[Unique Skill: High Panic Berserker]

She just unleashed the reins.